


Build my world around you

by Maegfen



Category: Zoo (TV)
Genre: AU, Bit of Fluff, F/M, Pregnancy, Set in S2 at some point, Things take a wild turn after Caraquet, bit of angst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-26
Updated: 2017-12-26
Packaged: 2019-02-22 05:05:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,726
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13159878
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Maegfen/pseuds/Maegfen
Summary: So, here it is, my first posted fic in about 18 months. This originated as a couple of prompts from klutzygirl on tumblr in July 2016 and it's taken me this long to be happy enough with it to post it. Title taken from the Tribe Society Song 'Pain Told Love.'Takes place after the rescue of Logan and Jamie from Caraquet, then veers off into AU territory.Please don't hesitate to let me know what you think of this; I've been out of the writing game for a *long* time and I'm feeling particularly worried about posting this...On that note - enjoy...





	Build my world around you

**Author's Note:**

> So, here it is, my first posted fic in about 18 months. This originated as a couple of prompts from klutzygirl on tumblr in July 2016 and it's taken me this long to be happy enough with it to post it. Title taken from the Tribe Society Song 'Pain Told Love.'  
> Takes place after the rescue of Logan and Jamie from Caraquet, then veers off into AU territory.  
> Please don't hesitate to let me know what you think of this; I've been out of the writing game for a *long* time and I'm feeling particularly worried about posting this...
> 
> On that note - enjoy...

It takes them a while to get back on level pegging again. Mitch soon realizes that he hasn’t taken Jamie’s own experiences into account, that he’d had been living under some illusion that she’d come out of the crash and everything else that followed with no lingering effects whatsoever. He’d been so focused on getting her back that he’d forgotten to plan ahead for what came _after_.

Jamie’s the same when it comes down to it; she’d been so focused on _surviving_ that she hadn’t, if she’s honest with herself, given a second thought to how Mitch would feel about everything. She’d been traipsing through the woods with Logan while Mitch had been trying to find her _and_ save the world at the same time. She’d never given the possibility that he’d been suffering and mourning and everything else in between anything more than a passing thought.

Their friendship is strained despite their personal revelations, the tension evident every time that the two of them are in the same room together. A wariness falls between them, as if they don’t know how to be comfortable in each other’s presence any more. Jamie retreats into herself, or spends time with Logan, the only other person who’d actually been out there with her in the wilderness, while Mitch hides in plain sight, becomes a mainstay in the lab no matter the time of day or night, focuses solely on trying to cure Jackson, to save the world, to move on from Jamie.

The two of them are like kindergartners trying to put a square peg in a round hole, but neither of them think to actually _talk_ to the other in order to solve the puzzle.

It’s a disaster waiting to happen.

* * *

 

Two months after they rescue Jamie and Logan from Caraquet the shit really hits the fan. The team are attempting to catch the last animal of seven that they need, a tapir in the middle of the Amazon that can completely camouflage itself, and all six of them tread carefully through the forest in a bid to catch the last animal. Jamie tags along with Logan while Mitch plows ahead, muttering every so often to Abe or Jackson, or trading barbs with Dariela. It’s tense, but they all know they have a job to do; the fate of the world comes before their own relationships after all.

It’s only after the tapir is in the vehicle bay, after Logan has betrayed them, after a terrifying gunfight, _after_ Davies chases them out of South American airspace and they escape by the skin of their teeth that Jamie _finally_ breaks. She rounds on Mitch before they’ve all barely had time to breathe.

The argument that ensues is the biggest they’ve ever had; Jackson, Abe and Dariela quickly leave them be, shutting the door to the vehicle bay behind them as they retreat to the forward section of the plane.  
Jamie shouts truths about Mitch’s arrogance and he replies with words about her cowardice in not facing up to her obvious PTSD and to stop shutting him out. The accusations and honesty hurt but both of them realize that everything has been leading up to this, every awkward confrontation since her rescue has set them on this path.

When Mitch surprises them both and pulls Jamie into a tight hug they both immediately relax, their shouting match instantly forgotten. He refuses to let her go until her tears dry out and their whispered apologies are understood and accepted.

It’s a fresh start for both of them.

* * *

 

After the argument Mitch and Jamie settle quickly into more of a routine, and they at least try to communicate a little better than they did before.

It doesn’t take Mitch long to discover that Jamie suffers from nightmares most nights, and while Jamie occasionally allows him to watch over her, it takes a good few weeks for Jamie to be able to speak fully about the experiences she’d had since the plane crash.

He’d examined her as soon as they’d gotten back on the plane after Caraquet of course, more for his own sanity than hers. He’d cataloged all the cuts, bruises and scars she’d acquired, checked the nerves in the scar on her right leg before cleaning and strapping up the space where her toe used to be. But it still hurts him to know that Jamie’s suffering and there’s little he can do to help her except be around to offer her a kind ear or shoulder when she needs it.

Mitch wishes he could help her more, but he’s content to give everything she’s willing to take and for now it’s enough.

It has to be.

Neither of them are sure exactly _when_ it happens, but over the weeks Mitch ends up using Jamie’s room as a base for his research when he’s not in the lab. Normally he’s still working when she throws him out for a few minutes to get changed, but he’s granted access again as soon as she curled up in the blankets. Mitch stays late into the night, desk lamp too dim to really be effective enough, but it’s mainly for show by the time Jamie’s asleep; they both know he’s only _really_ there to keep an eye on her. It’s an unspoken agreement between them , this little ritual of protection. Mitch is pretty damn sure the rest of the group have questions about this new status quo, but no one ever mentions it, so he never provides an answer. If he’s honest, he’s not really sure what he’d say if he was questioned anyway.

Jamie mumbles in her sleep sometimes, and Mitch is often loathe to wake her when the dreams get bad, choosing instead to sit at her desk and continue poring over his books on DNA; he still has to save Jackson and the entire population of animals after all.

It’s slow, but eventually Jamie opens up, tells him about Anik and Logan and the man she’d stabbed and Gwen and how she’s struggling to face up to the fact that she feels very little remorse for the lives she’s taken. Mitch holds her close as she cries at the amount of blood on her hands.

Mitch confides, late one night, as they’re drinking warm drinks (him a black coffee, her a hot chocolate) that he’s not convinced he can save Jackson, that he’s not sure the younger man even wants to be helped in the wake of Chloe’s death.

“And there’s no a damn thing I can do if that’s what his mindset is,” he mutters, taking another sip of coffee.

“I understand,” Jamie says. “He’ll come around, you know he will. You’ll convince him to move past his grief and start living again.” She pauses, smiles, takes a sip of her own drink as she leans back against the pillow of her bed. “I believe in you Mitch.”

Her words take him back to that operation at the zoo, the fiasco with Ray, the last time Jamie had ever seen Chloe. Jamie seems to realize this at the same time and becomes sullen, before Mitch moves to sit next to her on her bed, the mattress creaking a little at his movement. He carefully puts his arm around her and offers what little comfort he can.

She falls asleep that night with her head on his shoulder and wakes up, fully clothed, wrapped around him.

They never mention it.

* * *

 

As the weeks pass Mitch and Jamie inevitably become closer, leaning on each other when the nights are bad, or the day’s events hit them particularly hard.Their friendship has surpassed what it was before, the feelings that were on a knife edge after the kiss, before the crash, settle into ones of familiarity and longing, although they’re both reluctant to take the plunge into the possibility of something else, both terrified of unsettling the balance they’d fought so hard to achieve.

Neither of them understands how deeply they’ve fallen until it’s nearly too late…

* * *

 

She’d heard from Jackson that the others had carried on to the remote Reiden facility after they’d rescued her but it wasn’t until Abe’s desperate phone-call had come through that she relalized everything had nearly gone so, so wrong.

It had been a horrible wait for word from someone on the team, and Jamie had felt like she’d held her breath for an eternity when Jackson finally gets a call from Dariela to say that they’d succeeded, that they’d found what they were looking for and that Mitch had come away from the experience with only minor injuries.

The five minutes it takes him to reach her door is torture. She’s retreated here to change after being dragged through the forest by Davies’ crew and her hair is still slightly damp from the shower, but she knows the others have made it back on board and that Mitch was heading straight up to see her.

There’s a tentative knock on the door as she sits in quiet contemplation. Her hands are trembling slightly as she processes the afternoon’s events, although whether it’s from her own experiences or the knowledge that the man standing a few feet away might not have made it back at all if circumstances had been any different.

She stumbles to her feet, a latent rush of adrenaline sweeping through her as she makes her way to the door. Sliding it open she just stares at him for a second, taking in his harried appearance ( _hair more disheveled than usual, a streak of mud across his cheek, a faint trace of blood on his forehead…_ ) while all he can do is stand in front of her looking both nervous and relieved all at the same time. Mitch doesn’t even argue as Jamie grabs his hand and tugs him into her room.

Jamie pulls him to her almost as soon as the door to the bedroom is shut, lips pressing against his in a fit of desperation. Mitch gasps and kisses her back, stumbling as he tries to balance both of them.

It’s a frenzied kiss, so unlike their first all those months ago, but this means something more now. It’s the first step into the unknown but, as Jamie’s hands slide around his back and his slip into her hair, both of them know that this is _right_.

“You could have _died_ you idiot,” Jamie suddenly mutters into his mouth, drawing him closer to kiss him again, to bite his lip, to try and tell him how scared she’d been.

“I know,” he whispers back, “I know. I’m sorry.”

Mitch kisses her lips, her throat, her collarbone, light touches to reaffirm that they’re okay and safe and alive.

Jamie’s hands wander across his chest, lifts the shirt from his body and pulls it over his head. There’s a deep bruise forming just above his heart and Jamie presses a kiss to it. He’d been so damn close to being killed. She knows he’d have died if Allison hadn’t insisted on him wearing a bullet proof vest when they entered the facility. God, even Jackson’s now passed out in his room recovering and he’s got the advantage of mutant DNA to help him heal. Mitch is just a regular human, and certainly not bulletproof.

“It doesn’t matter,” Jamie mutters against his mouth, nipping at his bottom lip, “just don’t do it again; I’m not losing you Mitch.”

“I won’t, _you_ won’t” he affirms, lowering her to the bed, tracing his mouth across her skin, “I promise.”

He’s heavy and comforting over her, and in the moment that they’re finally bare and Mitch pushes into her they both gasp. Mitch lowers his forehead onto hers and they just breathe. Time slows and it seems like an age before Jamie encourages Mitch to move with a kiss to his lips and a squeeze of her legs. For once in his life he gets the idea and neither of them look back.

It’s frantic and loving and the two of them whisper everything they’ve been reluctant to say since the moment they were reunited in Caraquet.

* * *

 

The rest of the group take the revelation that Mitch and Jamie are dating with nothing more than a shrug (Dariela,) a laugh (Jackson) and a hug (Abe.) There are comments that ‘we all knew it was inevitable,’ to ‘Chloe always said this would happen’ to ‘just don’t go sucking face while we’re on missions,’ and it becomes nothing more than a side note to the team dynamic.

Mitch and Jamie spend as much time together as they can, reluctant to waste any more opportunities.  
  
They spend days working together and the nights sleeping together.

* * *

 

Things carry on as normal. At least, normal for them. They grieve for Chloe, they fight Reiden and Davies and hordes of animals. In between gunfights and high speed chases, they try and save the planet.  
  
During everything that happens, Mitch has Jamie, and Jamie has Mitch and they’re happy.

Despite how happy they are together, everything changes one day four months down the line…

* * *

 

“Hey,” Mitch mutters, watching as Jamie hops up onto the bar stool opposite. He’s preparing dinner for the group (It’s Monday, it’s his turn, he’s making tacos because it’s one of the few things he can cook without potentially poisoning people…) and he waves offhandedly with a large knife in one hand and a lettuce in the other.

“Hi,” Jamie replies, leaning on the counter with one arm and resting her head in the palm of her hand. “Gonna be long?”

Mitch shakes his head.

“About another 15 minutes,” he replies. “The meat’s nearly ready, just preparing the salad.”

He waves the lettuce in her direction as if to prove a point.

“Good,” Jamie replies, before leaning over and dragging him down by his shirt to place a kiss on his lips. “I need to speak to you after dinner if that’s okay?”

Mitch eyes her suspiciously. He senses that Jamie’s nervous, but he can’t fathom why.

“Everything alright?”

“It’s fine,” Jamie replies, kissing him again. “Just have something to discuss with you.”

“Okay.”

He kisses her once more, before Jamie hops off the stool and heads back to where the others are crashed out in the lounge. Mitch watches her walk up the stairs before he continues to chop up the lettuce, a look of confusion on his face.

An hour later, Mitch pushes open the door to their room (still Jamie’s really, but he’s all but moved in now…) He watches as Jamie fiddles with the book on her bedside table, so distracted that she doesn’t even notice his arrival.

He coughs, and Jamie looks up.

“So, here I am. Are you _sure_ everything’s okay Jamie, because you had me wo-”

“I’m pregnant,” Jamie confesses, barely giving Mitch enough time to sit down on the edge of the bed.

There are a couple of awkward seconds then, and Jamie watches as Mitch peers at her. It’s not often that he’s silenced mid-sentence, but she’s making it a bit of a habit.

“Pregnant?” He says after a while, as if it’s a word he’s never heard before.

“Yeah.”

She nods and reaches out to take his hand, places it on her stomach. There’s no bump, not yet, but she still hears the hitch in his breath at the touch.

“Mitch? Talk to me. Is this… is this okay?”

He’s silent for a couple of seconds again, before he leans over a presses a kiss to her lips that is passionate and heated and loving all at once.

“Are you kidding?” Mitch says as he pulls back, a smile on his face, “this is… Jamie this is _amazing_ news.”

Jamie lets out a sigh of relief, because they’ve never discussed it, not really. They’d been happy to just… be and to fight against animals and army generals and everything in between. There’s never even really been time to think about the future.

“Oh thank God,” she says, and she’s pretty sure she’s going to start crying. “It’s just we’ve never mentioned children and with everything that’s happened and th-”  
  
It’s Mitch’s turn to cut her off and he pulls her to him, kissing her deeply before he lowers her onto the bed, intent on showing her just how happy he is.

* * *

 

“That’s a ring.”  
  
“Yes.”  
  
“And it’s for me?”  
  
Mitch sighs and rolls his eyes.  
  
“Well I thought about proposing to Abe, but I think Dariela might have had something to say about that. Of _course_ it’s for you.”  
  
Jamie swats at his chest, but Mitch grabs her wrist and uses his loose grip to pull her towards him. He kisses her forehead and ghosts his other hand through her hair.  
  
“You ruined my plan you know,” he says, smiling as he presses another kiss to her temple.  
  
“You had a plan? To propose?”  
  
Mitch nods quickly before elaborating.  
  
“Yeah I did. Allison had given us that week off, and we were going to land in Bilbao and I was going to whisk you away to a hotel and propose. It was going to be very romantic.”  
  
“And then I told you I was pregnant.”  
  
“Yeah,” Mitch says. He suddenly realizes that Jamie might think he's disappointed, and hurries to allay any of her fears. “Not that you being pregnant is a horrible thing; it’s really not, it’s the most amazing thing that could have happened and I am thankful for the two of you everyday.”  
  
He places his hand gently over her stomach. Even though there’s still a very tiny bump, he feels the connection between himself and his unborn child. It still doesn’t seem real…  
  
“It’s just that I don’t want you to think that I’m proposing because you’re pregnant.”  
  
“Why the hell would I think that Mitch?” Jamie says, leaning on his shoulder. “I saw the ring months ago…”

“What?!”

“Honestly, if you don’t want me to find something, you need a better hiding spot than your bedside drawer - I found it while looking for some socks the other week.”

Mitch rolls his eyes and laughs before kissing her softly. It seems, in his opinion, that they’re destined to do everything backwards, but he finds as Jamie leans on his shoulder and starts to talk to him about her day, that he wouldn’t change it for the world.

* * *

 

The first time Mitch sets up the ultrasound in the lab he has to take 5 minutes to calm down before he calls Jamie in.

* * *

 

It takes Jamie a couple of moments to notice that Abe’s appeared in the kitchen. It’s 2am, Mitch is crashed out in bed and she’s craving ice-cream and pickles.

“Good morning,” Abe says jovially, moving to sit at the counter. “Shouldn’t you be resting?”

Jamie chuckles and gestures towards the large carton of Phish Food in her hand and the open jar sitting next to her.

“Baby wanted some food and who am I to argue?”

It’s Abe turn to laugh as he moves towards the freezer and pulls out another tub of ice-cream.

“I sense your little one is just as restless as its father…”

“Ha, yeah, pretty much. They’re not kicking yet, but it can only be a matter of time.”

The two of them settle at the counter, Abe giving her bowl of ice-cream and pickles a slightly disgusted look before tucking into his own serving. There’s a slight pause as the two of them sit quietly and eat, before Abe speaks up again.

“You and Mitch seem happy.”

“We are,” Jamie says, smiling. “It’s weird. When I met him at the zoo, that first time, I had no idea that he’d become so important to me, that I’d fall in love with him. I mean, I’ve got a whole new family, with you, Dariela and Jackson. But this whole relationship with Mitch still seems so surreal; I never thought I’d find someone I love this much, let alone have a child with…”

Abe just smiles.

“God, I’ve never said it out loud to anyone but him before.”

The two of them lapse into silence again, Jamie’s head leaning on Abe’s shoulder. She can feel herself drifting off to sleep, realizes she should probably put her bowl in the sink and disappear back to bed.

“Oh, I see what’s happening here,” comes a familiar voice from the doorway. “I fall asleep and you’re immediately moving on to the next man you find.”

Jamie opens her eyes and just _beams_ at Mitch, who’s wrapped up in his robe, hair ruffled and all over the place and a faux frown on his face as he takes in the scene of Jamie leaning against Abe.

“It’s not what it looks like,” Abe says hurriedly, looking slightly wary in the dim light of the kitchen. Jamie places a hand on his forearm to placate him.

“Don’t worry about it Abe. Mitch clearly thinks he’s developed a sense of humor in the last couple of hours.”

Mitch mock glares at her, but then smiles.

“Everything okay?” he asks. Jamie senses he’s trying to be nonchalant, but there’s a hint of worry in his tone.

“Yeah, everything’s great. Just cravings…”

She gestures towards the food laid out on the counter.

“Sure?”

Jamie nods and moves to stand up, placing her and Abe’s bowls in the sink, before moving over to Mitch. He’s grabbed a pickle from the jar in the few moments she had her back turned and Jamie laughs as he swallows it quickly. She wraps her arms round him and pulls him into a hug.

There are a couple of quiet seconds before she hears, at nothing louder than a whisper: “I woke up and you weren’t there, thought I should come and check you were alright.”

“Thank you.”

She leans up, places a soft kiss on his lips, not minding about the fact that Abe is sitting behind them, clearly watching their interaction.

“C’mon, let’s go back to bed.”

Mitch doesn’t say anything in reply, merely waves goodbye at Abe and follows Jamie back to their room, hand still clutched in hers.

* * *

 

“Max?”

“We’re not naming him after my father. How about Miles?”

“It’s a possibility… do we have to stick to the M names though?”

Mitch sighs and shakes his head. There’s a hint of hesitation in his voice before he answers.

“It’s a bit of a tradition in the Morgan family, but seeing as my dad isn’t winning any father of the year awards and I never knew my grandfather it’s not one I feel completely obligated to continue.”

Jamie takes his hand and squeezes it.

“We haven’t got to decide anything now, we’ve still got a few months after all…”

Mitch shifts so that he can press a kiss to Jamie’s forehead.

“Yeah,” he replies quietly, “we’ve got plenty of time; there’s a perfect name for him out there…”

Jamie nods and starts again on suggestions.

* * *

 

Jamie hates not being able to see. Mitch has one hand over her eyes as he guides her down what she thinks is a series of corridors. Her feet ache and walking is not fun when you’re 7 months pregnant.

“ _Mitch_ ,” she whines, trying to reach out and stop him, but he is steadfast in his determination to carry on. “Where are we going?”

“You’ll see,” he whispers, but says nothing else. Its a good thing she loves him, Jamie thinks, otherwise I’d kill him.

A minute or so later Mitch brings them to a halt, and Jamie feels a cool breeze hit her skin as he pulls her hand away from her eyes.

She stops, mouth open in shock and amazement.

Before her, spread out in a small hall, are her friends, her _family_. Abe and Dariela are talking quietly to an elderly man at the far side of the room and Jamie spots Clem, Audra and Jason talking quietly to Jackson. Hell, even Allison is loitering uncomfortably in the back of the room, drink already in hand. Jamie immediately turns to talk to the man at her side.

“What _is_ this?”

“Well,” Mitch says, turning towards her and smiling slightly, even while he looks mildly embarrassed, “I know you didn’t want a really big deal made out of our wedding, and you know my thoughts on the whole thing...”  
  
Jamie scoffs. Yeah, Mitch had told her plenty of times that the old traditional ways could go hang, and that the only things they needed when they got married were their family and a priest.

“So I sorta organized everyone to be here so, y’know, we could get married today. It’s kind of our anniversary after all.”

She gives him a look of confusion; they’ve been ‘dating’ for 10 months, and she can’t place the date as one of significance.

“It’s 3 years to the day since we met,” Mitch elaborates, shrugging as if it’s no big deal. “I thought it would be a nice way to commemorate you entering my life, giving me a second chance, dragging me into this insanity…”  
  
He trails off when he notices that Jamie is still silent. In truth she’s speechless. She wants to hit him for organizing all of this without her permission, but when she sees the hope and love (and fear) in his eyes, she can’t help but laugh, a smile breaking over her lips.

“You romantic you,” she whispers, pulling him down for a swift kiss, and it’s enough to let him know that everything’s okay.

After that the ceremony is quick, to the point and beautiful. Jamie beams all the way through the vows, delighted when Mitch does the same as she transitions from Jamie Campbell to Jamie Morgan ( _and God if that doesn’t sound sweet and bizarre all at once._ ) They kiss when given permission by the elderly gentlemen she’d spotted earlier; Mitch holds her so close in the embrace that Jamie faintly hears Jackson wolf-whistle and Clem groan in disgust.

Mitch reveals, as he escorts her out of the hall and away from their friends, to a secure hotel room that Allison has arranged for the evening, that they’ve been given the week off for a honeymoon.

“Unless,” he reveals as he kisses her softly, then rests a hand gently on her swollen belly, “there’s an emergency that we are _absolutely_ needed to handle.”

“We better make the most of it then,” Jamie laughs in reply as she pulls him towards the bed…

* * *

 

“This sucks,” Jamie comments as Trotter leans over the table and smiles before moving his rook across the board.

“I know Mrs. Morgan, but your husband gave strict instructions not to let you off the plane, which is hardly surprising given the fact that you are now 4 days past your due date…”

The pilot lets the comment hang, and Jamie groans and rolls her eyes as she replies by moving a bishop.

“You don’t need to tell me,” she utters as she shifts slightly before she awkwardly stands up. “I’ll be back in a sec, I need a sweater from our room; I’m freezing.”

Trotter nods and smiles before turning his attention back to the chessboard.

Jamie wanders off to the bedroom she shares with Mitch, feeling uncomfortable and more like a penguin waddling it’s way across the ice than anything else.

Just as she exits the room, pale green sweater now covering her body, there’s a crackle on the radio and Jamie instinctively reaches over to press the button to activate the line.

“—mie?”

“Mitch?!”

“Ah, hey honey, sorry to be blunt could you please tell Trotter to get the plane up and running? We might have some company when we get to the airfield and we’re about-” There’s a brief pause and Jamie’s horrified to hear gunfire in the background and a shout of _“MOVE!”_ from Jackson.

“Mitch!”

“5 minutes Jamie, we’ll be there in 5 minutes okay?”

Jamie looks round for Trotter, only to find the pilot waving a hand at her as he heads back towards the cockpit; clearly he’d heard Mitch’s message.

Jamie feels sick to her stomach, once again afraid for her husband’s life and the lives of her friends…

It’s then that she feels something warm leaking down the inside of her pants, and Jamie looks down despite knowing exactly what has happened. It seems that their baby is just as keen to make sure his father is okay as she is…

“Aw crap…”

* * *

 

Adam Michael Morgan is born 24,000 feet in the air with his family around him and a couple of American jets on their tail. His father delivers him while his god parents ensure that his mother is comfortable and distracted from causing the father of her child bodily harm for the long hours of labour and pain.

He’s a healthy baby with a loud wail and a bunch of dark hair on his head.

Everyone agrees, from Mitch to Jamie and the rest of his new family, that Adam is perfect.

* * *

 

“You okay?”

“I’m fine.”

Mitch, seemingly satisfied with Jamie’s answer, slumps into the space next to her. She’s holding Adam to her chest, their son sleeping soundly after being fed. The plane is on it’s way to Guatemala to meet up with Allison and her contacts, and Mitch can’t help but smile when Adam snuggles closer to his mother, unperturbed by the noise of the engines or the banking of the plane as Trotter makes a slight adjustment in their course.  
  
It seems that Adam has settled into their slightly nomadic lifestyle better than any of them could have imagined - Mitch figures that being born on a plane mid-flight probably helps; his son has known little else in his short life.

* * *

 

Jamie sometimes forgets that Mitch has done this before.

There are times when he looks just as panicked as she does when looking after Adam, but then, normally when father and son are on their own, he seems to seem more calm and comfortable.

Tonight is one such time. Allison has requested the team head to Columbia to track down a couple of rouge Reiden operatives, and Mitch has been up in the lab all afternoon. Jamie had fallen asleep in bed with Adam nearby, exhausted after trying to track down another set of Reiden holdouts while feeding a 3 month old baby and co-ordinating with both Allison and Trotter on the upcoming mission.

She wakes to the sound of her son’s cries, but by the time she sits up, Mitch is already at the crib’s side, Adam in his arms and his low voice soothing the baby back to sleep. Jamie watches, taking in the scene before her. Mitch, it seems, hasn’t noticed that she has awoken, all his focus on his son as he tries to settle him quickly.

Mitch rocks Adam gently in his arms, whispering things only he and his son will ever hear; his voice is so hushed that Jamie struggles to make out anything, despite the fact she is only a couple of feet away.

 _He’s a natural,_ Jamie thinks to herself, imagining how Mitch must have been with baby Clementine, how his caring nature must have shone through until poor decisions and lack of communication ruined the content family life he had once had. _He’s making up for it now though._

Adam, soothed by the voice of his father and the calming rocking motions, soon slips back into slumber. Mitch carefully places Adam back in his crib, tucks the comforter around the now sleeping baby and turns. Jamie smiles at him as he realizes she’s awake. He smiles back before moving over to join her in bed.

 

* * *

 

3 years, 3 months and 4 days after the start of the animal apocalypse it suddenly ends. A cure is found, enemies are defeated and the natural balance of the world is on the course to be restored. Davies, and by extension Reiden, are finally eliminated, and Jackson, Jamie and the others can only sigh in relief and collapse in exhaustion when they all come to the realisation that it’s finally over.

There’s much to do in the aftermath of the last few years, but Allison, thankfully, takes point in the worldwide clean-up. Mitch watches as she thanks the others, Jamie included, before she wanders over to stand in front of him. He’s holding Adam, rocking him gently after he’d awoken during the celebrations, but Mitch focuses on his ex-lover as she looks for something to say. Seconds pass before she speaks.

“Thank you Mitch. For everything.”

“You’re welcome. Of course, I would have helped save the world for anyone who asked, it wasn’t just because it was you.”

He can’t resist the dig, even though they’d buried the hatchet long ago. Allison nods in acknowledgment, but doesn’t dignify him with a direct answer. Instead, Allison reaches out and brushes a finger over Adam’s tiny head. She smiles.

“He’s lucky to have you as his father. He’s lucky to have you both…” Allison glances over her shoulder at Jamie, who’s deep in conversation with Abe.

“I will,” Mitch affirms, dropping a kiss on his son’s head. “At least we have a world we can look forward to living in now. It was touch and go there for a while.”

“So it was. I’m sure the world will hear about your group’s courage, sacrifices and successes in the near future. The people deserve to know who saved them.”

Mitch just shrugs and gives her a faint smile.

“I was never in it for the plaudits Allison, you know that. I was in it for something else…” His gaze falls on his wife then, just as Jamie turns to look at him. She beams at him before turning back to her conversation.

Allison remains silent for a few moments, before placing a hand on Mitch’s forearm.

“I’ll see you around Mitch. Take care of yourself…and your family.”

Mitch doesn’t reply, just watches as Allison turns and leaves the room. Adam fidgets in his arms and his father moves back across the room, ready to join his wife in their continued celebrations - they had saved the world after all…

 

* * *

 

“He’s so small.”

Clementine peers into the bassinet and watches as her Adam wriggles to try and get himself comfortable.

“You were that tiny once,” Mitch says, a smile on his face. It’s easier now, after everything, to speak to his little girl. He instantly regrets missing so much of her life due to his own stubbornness. He vows to himself that he won’t make the same mistake with Adam.

Clem bites her lip, and Mitch senses she has a question.

“What’s up?”

“Can I hold him?”

“Yeah, yeah, definitely. He’s a bit sleepy though, but that should make him easier to pick up and hold.”

Mitch spends the next couple of minutes settling Adam into Clem’s arms, instructing his daughter how to hold her half-brother and showing her how to make the baby smile. Jamie watches on, smiling at the pair and laughing as Adam wakes up fully and tries to pull at Clem’s hair.

“Do you think he’ll like me?” Clem asks suddenly, as Adam fidgets and wraps his fingers around the cuff of her sweater. “I mean, when he’s older.”

Mitch stares at her for a second before he answers.

“Don’t be ridiculous Clem,” he mutters, leaning over to plant a soft kiss on her forehead, “he loves you already. Look.”

He gestures down to the baby in her arms and Clem lets her gaze slip to Adam. The baby is gazing up at her, eyes wide and curious, tiny fingers suddenly reaching out and clutching her own. There is a look of glee on his small round face and Clem simply beams at him.

Adam beams back, wide-mouthed and toothless, a quiet giggle escaping from his lips.

Mitch sits next to his daughter, watches his son in her arms and smiles, content.

* * *

 

“You look happy.”

He’s so engrossed in his task that Mitch doesn’t even hear her enter the room. The baby in his arms fusses a little but then settles right back into feeding from the bottle his father holds, and the quiet affords Mitch the opportunity to turn round and face the woman who’s entered the kitchen.

“I am,” he finally says, a small smile crossing his face. It’s difficult to admit, because he and Audra _had_ been happy once, before everything had gone to shit and he’d walked away from it all.

Audra smiles in return, her face looking older than when he saw her last; he figures a couple of years and the onslaught of animal apocalypse will do that to a person. The light from the fridge flickers again, so Mitch kicks it closed gently with one foot before he turns back and leans against the counter, mindful of the plates still piled up in the sink.

“How old is he now?” Audra asks, taking a step closer. She reaches for a glass and fills it from the faucet, taking a drink before looking to Mitch for an answer.

“Five months,” Mitch replies, looking down at his son ( _his son, he still can’t believe it…_ ) “He’s not normally this quiet on solid ground, but I think the traveling knocked it out of him today.”

Audra nods. Clementine had been the same; fussy, always fidgeting and making noise - it was something she’d clearly inherited from her father.

“May I?” Audra asks, nodding at the feeding bundle.

“Oh, yeah, of course,” Mitch replies, because this is better he thinks, this is what they were like before his screw-ups and abandonment. Back when they were happy and a family. Mitch has a new family now, but that doesn’t mean he forgets his old one.

He hands over Adam carefully, mindful of the bottle that he’s nursing from. Audra holds him confidently, and smiles up at Mitch again as she takes in the baby’s features.

“He’s got your hair,” she comments, a smile on her lips.

“Mmm. Jamie’s eyes though,” Mitch answers, peering at the bundle. “And her nose. In fact, I’m pretty sure the hair is the only thing of me he’s got,” he says wryly.

“Nah,” Audra says, “there’s something else. An intelligence there, right behind the eyes.”

Mitch scoffs.

“Jamie again.”

“Don’t be so hard on yourself Mitch. You and your friends almost single handedly saved the human race from being wiped out by vengeful animals; I think it’s safe to say that your son is going to be a damn genius. A genius surrounded by a family who loves him, a family who would do anything for him.”

Mitch has never been one to accept compliments easily, so instead he says nothing at all. He and Audra stand silently in the kitchen, both of them watching the tiny baby fall asleep after Audra carefully burps him.

Several minutes pass before Audra passes Adam back to his father, presses a soft kiss to Mitch’s cheek and leaves the room. Mitch listens as her footsteps move up the stairs, and he’s so distracted that he doesn’t hear Jamie wander in through the other door.

“Hey.”

“Hey you,” Jamie mutters as she reaches his side, leaning up to kiss his lips quickly. “Hey buddy.” She plants a soft kiss on her sons forehead next, and she smiles as he stirs a little. “You ready for bed?”

“Absolutely. I was just waiting for the young man here to be finished with his bottle and I would have headed up.”

Jamie doesn’t reply straight away, just takes Adam into her arms as Mitch carefully hands him over.

“So, what’s on the agenda for tomorrow?”

Jamie shrugs, adjusting the baby a little as she does so.

“Not much I don’t think. Abe and the others are thinking of heading over to the coast, try and spend some time at the beach. Y’know, relax a little before we’re inevitably called in to help with the clean up.”

Mitch thinks that sounds like a great idea to him. After all, he’s helped save the world, he’s entitled to a little bit of well earned downtime with his family. He smiles and follows Jamie out of the room as she heads back to bed with their son in her arms. 

“Sounds perfect.”

 

* * *

 

**Author's Note:**

> So there it was guys. I hope it lived up to expectations.  
> Let me know what you think - kudos and comments make my day.
> 
> P.S. The prompts from klutzygirl were 1) pregnancy and 2) Clementine meeting her new sibling for the first time - I hope I did the prompts justice!


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